I keep hearing about coconut milk and coconut water. What is all the hype about? Do I need to get on the coconut bandwagon??

Coconut Meg

Hi 'Nut Meg,

Excellent Qs. First of all, there's a HUGE difference between coconut milk and coconut water. Coconut milk usually refers to a thick, creamy, canned ingredient that's made from a concentrated amount of coconut "meat." It's VERY calorie dense, with more than 450 calories and 50g fat per cup! Even the "lite" kind has at least a dozen fat grams per cup. Coconut water, on the other hand, is the clear liquid inside the coconut; that stuff is definitely getting a lot of buzz these days. I'm pretty selective when it comes to drinking my calories; I usually prefer to chew them. That being said, pure coconut water is SOOO good for you and tastes really GREAT. It has tons of potassium and electrolytes, and some experts say it hydrates better than regular water. Plus, the stats are pretty reasonable: 1 cup has about 45 calories and <1g fat (POINTS® value 1*). A brand called Zico makes 11-oz. and 14-oz. containers of coconut water with 60 cals each (POINTS® value 1*), including fruity flavors like Passion Fruit and Mango! There are other fruit-flavored versions out there -- like the kinds by O.N.E. and Vita Coco -- with pretty good stats. But always read labels carefully; watch out for lots of added sugar and extra calories. And whatever you do, don't confuse coconut milk with coconut water. Got it? Good!

Hi Hungry Girl,

I'm new to the site... Love your stuff! I want to buy one of your cookbooks, but I don't know which one. How do they differ? Which should I get first? Thanks!

Paige Turner

Hi Paige,

(Is that your REAL name?) Welcome to HG land! There are three LARGE Hungry Girl books and a smaller cocktail book out now (plus some fun items like an audiobook and a set of recipe cards). To help you decide which book to get, here's some info on each one...

Hungry Girl: Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt-Free Eating in the Real World - Also known as the green book, this is the very first HG cookbook. It has a little bit of everything: breakfast, soup, salad, and dessert recipes; fast-food makeovers; and, of course, survival guides! It's pretty classic and a great intro to HG recipes. And if you ever struggle with food decisions at restaurants, at parties, on vacations, and more, THIS is the book for you.

Hungry Girl 200 Under 200: 200 Recipes Under 200 Calories - This book is really great if you love to eat many mini meals (say that three times fast) throughout the day, since each recipe has fewer than 200 cals. There's an entire chapter of cupcakes; lots of mix-n-match options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; plus snacks, shakes, fun appetizers, and more...

Hungry Girl 1-2-3: The Easiest, Most Delicious, Guilt-Free Recipes on the Planet - Ooooh, the latest big HG book. This could be my favorite. The recipes are so insanely easy, ANYONE can make them. In addition to dishes with four or fewer ingredients, slow-cooker recipes, and meals made in foil packs for easy cleanup, there are more than 60 two-ingredient recipes! This is definitely the book for anyone who is looking for simple, yet fantastic, no-guilt recipes.

Hungry Girl Happy Hour: 75 Recipes for Amazingly Fantastic Guilt-Free Cocktails and Party Foods -This adorably sized book is AWESOME, especially if you like to have people over for get-togethers. There are recipes for finger foods, decadent cocktails, spiked pitcher drinks, and sooo much more. (It makes a great gift, too!)

Okay, I hope that helped you make your decision. Now click here to visit our book site! You can see photos of all the recipes and compare prices from popular online retailers. You'll find the Weight Watchers POINTS® value* for each recipe there, too. The books are also sold in stores, BTW. Happy chewing!!!

CHEW ON THIS:There are only a few days left in Audiobook Appreciation Month!!! Just sayin'...

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*The PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® values for these products and/or recipes were calculated by Hungry Girl and are not an endorsement or approval of the product, recipe, or its manufacturer or developer by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus® registered trademark and SmartPoints® trademark.

SmartPoints® value not what you expected?Click here for more info on how the values are calculated, plus more FAQs about PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® values on our website.